Saturday

All Day – Armory
Gaming Station
Grab a board game and play with friends (or make some new ones)!

11:00 AM – Panel Room
New Manga Product Rollout!
NC’s premier manga brand, Saturday AM, debuts details on their NEW TRADING CARD GAME, NEW APPAREL CONTEST for NEW ARTISTS, and NEW MANGA for 2025!

11:40 AM – ComiQuest Film Festival
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
In New York, mysterious radioactive ooze has mutated four sewer turtles into talking, upright-walking, crime-fighting ninjas. The intrepid heroes — Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael and Leonardo — are trained in the Ninjutsu arts by their rat sensei, Splinter. When a villainous rogue ninja, who is a former pupil of Splinter, arrives and spreads lawlessness throughout the city, it’s up to the plucky turtles to stop him.

12:00 PM – Panel Room
Bringing Characters To Life
Host of the podcast Systematic Geekology and co-host of the podcast Across the Bifrost; The Mighty Thor Podcast Will Rose talks to artists Tommy Lee Edwards, Bernard Chang, Tula Lotay, and Ben Bishop about how comic books use visuals like panel layout, costume, and cover images to deepen characterization.

12:00 PM – Armory
Martial Arts Demo
Come see Heroes and villains battle it out in epic hand to hand combat. Join Triangle Jiu-Jitsu for a martial arts demonstration showing off all of your favorite superhero moves–including the superhero landing!

1:00 PM – Panel Room
The Sinister and Sublime Art of Horror
Fear is a powerful, primal force – but it can be mastered. Summon the stuff of nightmares with creators who indulge in the dark, ferocious, and sometimes sanity-shattering art of horror: illustrator DaNi (Coffin Bound), writer Brockton McKinney (Gingerdead Man, Reptchild, Rick and Morty), writer Jeremy Whitley (Princeless, Unstoppable Wasp) and writer-director Cat Blackard (The Call of Cthulhu Mystery Program).

1:00 PM – Armory
Martial Arts Demo
Come see Heroes and villains battle it out in epic hand to hand combat. Join Triangle Jiu-Jitsu for a martial arts demonstration showing off all of your favorite superhero moves–including the superhero landing!

1:30 PM – ComiQuest Film Festival
Mystery Men
Champion City already has a superhero, the appropriately named Captain Amazing, but that doesn’t deter the city’s seven quirky amateur crime-fighters, who use the Captain’s capture at the hands of villain Casanova Frankenstein as motivation to prove themselves. The only problem is that their strange powers – silverware hurling, bowling, shovel skills, incompetent invisibility and deadly flatulence – aren’t doing them any favors.

2:00 PM – Panel Room
Watch This, Read That
Have you wanted to add to your reading list, but don’t know where to start? What do you like to watch? Let’s start there! We’ll look at some popular shows and break down the elements that make them hold a special place in our hearts. Then we’ll suggest some books, comics and manga to try based on popular favs.

3:00 PM – Panel Room
Trends in the Comics Industry
Comic books aren’t what they used to be! With digital sales, movie and TV connections, and crowdfunding platforms galore, people are making, distributing, and reading comics in ways we’ve never seen! Chat with publishers and creators about what’s changing in the way people and comics are evolving now!

4:00 PM – Panel Room
How a Late-Stage Cancer Survivor Found Comfort in Comics
When Paul Watson battled late-stage cancer in 2010, his life turned upside down. To help him get through the constant rounds of chemotherapy, surgeries, and long hours confined to a hospital bed, he turned to comic books. In this panel, Paul discusses comic books’ positive impacts on his emotional and mental health while going through his cancer journey. He will be joined by Richard Averitte, Executive Director of the American Cancer of Central & Eastern NC, who will discuss their patient support pillar.

4:30 PM – ComiQuest Film Festival
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
In New York, mysterious radioactive ooze has mutated four sewer turtles into talking, upright-walking, crime-fighting ninjas. The intrepid heroes — Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael and Leonardo — are trained in the Ninjutsu arts by their rat sensei, Splinter. When a villainous rogue ninja, who is a former pupil of Splinter, arrives and spreads lawlessness throughout the city, it’s up to the plucky turtles to stop him.

5:00 PM – Armory
Cosplay Showcase
Thrill to a costumed cavalcade of North Carolina’s best cosplay at the Annual Cosplay Showcase! Get here early and take pictures of your favorite characters in the clear spotlight, walking proudly across that Armory stage!

11:00 AM – Armory
Is It Manga If You’re Not Japanese?
Saturday AM discusses strategies for getting into the manga industry even if you’re not Japanese from some of the most successful non-Japanese manga-ka in the world.

11:00 AM – Panel Room
Finding God In Comics
Finding God in Comics with the hosts from the hit podcast Systematic Geekology! Our panelists are people of faith and we are big time geeks, yep! you can be both. Our goal is to have healthy and engaging conversations around our faith and those things we geek out on. On this panel and episode of Systematic Geekology we will explore the often complicated dynamic between “expectations and nostalgia” in our favorite fandoms.

12:00 PM – Armory
Creative Independence
They’ve covered topics from mental illness to systemic racism across printed books, webcomics, movies, TV shows, and educational lectures. Now hear Bob Burden (Flaming Carrot, Mystery Men), Keith Knight (Woke on Hulu, They Shoot Black People, Don’t They?), and JL Westover (Mr. Lovenstein, FEELINGS) talk about how to find your voice and reach your audience!

12:00 PM – Panel Room
The People v. The Jedi Order
A class action suit has been filed against the Jedi order and plaintiffs from the Outer Rim, the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Order of the Sith Lords are calling for them to be disbanded! Participants will be split into counsel for opposing sides to argue their case to our impartial judges (of Star Trek fans!).

1:00 PM – Armory
Cowabunga Cinema!
Screenwriter Todd W. Langen will provide behind-the-scenes commentary for selected sequences from the original “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” movie (1990) and its sequel “The Secret of The Ooze” (1991) – including what the ACTUAL damn secret was SUPPOSED to be! Learn about deleted scenes that broke Todd’s heart, and prepare to witness some cathartic blood-letting! [If time permits, a short Q&A will follow. If time doesn’t permit, Todd may take the room hostage anyway for therapeutic reasons.]

1:00 PM – Panel Room
Oni Press: 2025 and Beyond!
Oni Press is proud to be attending North Carolina Comic Con for the very first time! Hot off the resurrection of EC Comics, the 20th Anniversary of Scott Pilgrim, and the return of Adventure Time to comics, things at Oni are just heating up! Join President and Publisher Hunter Gorinson and Senior Sales Manager Michael Torma on as they peel back the curtain on comics publishing and offer the NCCC crowd a sneak peak at the next big thing in indie comics.

2:00 PM – Armory
Kevin Eastman Talks Turtles
Don’t miss this spotlight on Kevin Eastman, creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as he talks through everything you ever wanted to know about those Heroes on a Half Shell! Cowabunga!

2:00 PM – ComiQuest Film Festival
Streets of Fire
Amid a brooding rock & roll landscape, the Bombers motorcycle gang, led by the vicious Raven Shaddock, kidnap diva Ellen Aim. Her hope for rescue lies with unlikely heroes: soldier of fortune Tom Cody and his sidekick, the two-fisted beer-guzzling McCoy. Joined by Ellen’s manager, Billy Fish, the trio plunges headfirst into a world of rain-splattered streets, hot cars, and deadly assassins.

3:00 PM – Panel Room
The Ultimate Hour Quiz Show Spectacular
Are you the Ultimate comic book nerd? Test your trivia at the Ultimate Hour Quiz Show Spectacular, a live game show where players will test their knowledge in a series of questions and games and win fabulous prizes! Hosted by Ultimate Comics Cary’s back issue specialist, Daniel Adkins. Perfect for fans of Dropout’s Game Changer and Um, Actually!

4:00 PM – Armory
Cosplay Crafter’s Contest
The best handcrafted Cosplay in the Carolinas is on full display for you here at the capstone of NC Comicon, the judged Crafter’s competition! See artists whose work has staggered our audiences year after year alongside the most talented new creators of our community, all in a glorious walking display across the Armory stage!